Dawson is a 6'5", 305 lb. kid whom I see as an offensive guard rather than tackle. He claims a 325 lb. bench press and a 5.4-second forty. He spent his junior season in Texas playing at Cy-Ridge High School, but he transferred back to Detroit after football season ended and will play his senior year for the Technicians.

Dawson shows impressive footwork at times, and he shows a good understanding of protection schemes. You can tell that he has worked extensively on pass blocking, and I also liked that he shows chemistry with his teammates. There are some combo blocks that he works very nicely. He also shows the ability to give a good initial punch.

Unfortunately, this is the first commit of the day that leaves a little bit of a sour taste in my mouth. Despite the offers from big-time schools such as Alabama and Florida State, I think Michigan may have jumped the gun a little early on Dawson. In my opinion, he's not the elite prospect that some of Michigan's other targets are (such as Ethan Pocic, Chris Fox, etc.). Not that Dawson's commitment will necessarily prevent the Wolverines from grabbing those guys, but it does constrict the window a little bit. Dawson stands up high too often, and when he's not pulling or pass blocking, he tends to get lazy with his footwork. His base gets too narrow and he's passive. He seems content with just trying to push a guy around with his upper body. He's not a great athlete, but he moves well enough to be a an FBS player. I'm just not sure that the nastiness is there to finish blocks, drive guys into the ground, or get up to the next level.

Dawson's commitment gives the Wolverines seven commits for the class of 2013. He's also the ninth Cass Tech Technician to commit to Michigan since 2008 (Boubacar Cissoko).

39 comments:

He's a big body and a strong kid. That alone will get you looked at by big-time schools. He also played his junior year in Texas, which is a place where schools like Alabama and FSU scout frequently. If Dawson had played on the west coast or in the midwest, I'm not so sure that he would have been pursued by Alabama and FSU.

Well, unlike Pocic or Fox, Dawson will be coming from a high school in Michigan. On top of that, that high school happens to be one of Michigan's main pipelines. I think you have to take the top guys from the state of Michigan before going after the out-of-state kids. The guys out of state will always have huge offer lists and can swing any direction, but you always start with a leg up with the in-state guys, and you shouldn't ignore that advantage. Not everyone will switch at the last second if you just drop them an offer.

"I think you have to take the top guys from the state of Michigan before going after the out-of-state kids."

With all respect, why do you think that? What if the top-tier guys in Michigan are 3-star players?

I agree that they'd be less likely to waver than guys from Utah, but I think Michigan should keep its focus on quality. There are plenty of programs (Tennessee, Nebraska, etc.) that have had extended periods of prosperity based largely on out-of-state players.

Your post sounds a little to much like the ones that say "Izzo took Draymond Green just to keep him a way from Michigan."

I'm not saying you should ignore the in-state advantage. But as Anonymous 3:03 p.m. says above, that doesn't necessarily mean every guy in the state of Michigan is going to be a quality prospect. You have to draw the line somewhere. Dawson could end up being a very good player, and the fact that so many other Cass Tech kids are on the team might give him some support if he struggles early. Unfortunately, I'm just not sure how much potential I see here.

I'm with Matt on this one. If there is an in-state kid who is ranked highly, performs well at camps, and has the potential to be a big time recruit, you MUST lock down in-state. The benefits outweigh the costs on this one, not just on the field but in the locker room and on the recruiting trail. If you ignore an in-state kid like this (borderline as you may think, but not necessarily as others think), you lose traction further down the line with other in-state kids as word gets around the coa I'm not saying offer any old kid in-state who is halfway decent, but this is clearly not the case with Dawson. Consensus (aside from you, not saying you're wrong here...) is that this kid is going to be good, so in my mind it's worth the offer and I'm happy with the commit.

I agree that you shouldn't offer everyone, but Dawson is a guy that has drawn offers from recruiting powerhouses like Alabama and Florida State. He's rated as a four star recruit by two of the three major services, and the third service simply hasn't rated him, yet. It's not like the guy is a scrub; he's a quality guy (at least some people think so) and he's from Michigan. And obviously, there's no guarantee that we would get the other guys we're recruiting anyway. Any school can offer a scholarship and have some phone conversations with a top recruit, but getting from that point to the signing of a letter of intent is no easy process and not the least bit predictable.

Hoke pulls in local talent. He's not going to wait around for the 5 star player when a great 4 star player is in his backyard and wants to come here.

Leaves a sour taste in your mouth? Are you serious right now? The two recruiting sites that ranked him seem to think highly of him. We have a coaching staff who offered and accepted his commitment. There are other big time programs, like Bama, who think he is worthy of a scholarship offer. But this commitment leaves a sour taste in this high school coach's mouth, who thinks his word his God.

This post leaves a sour taste in my mouth. As fans we should appreciate what we have.

I know, I know, other people like him. Look, recruiting sites can be wrong. So can coaches. So can I. This is clearly my opinion and it's preserved here forever (or at least for the foreseeable future). So if I'm wrong, I'm wrong. But I'm not going to predict greatness for every prospect because lots of offensive linemen (and recruits in general) don't pan out. If you don't agree, that's your prerogative.

That's essentially what recruiting ratings are. Scouting services tell you which players are better. The #100 player is more preferable than the #150 player. So on and so forth. It's the same information. I just say it straight out rather than pussy-footing around the issue.

You bring up a very interesting question about CENTER. How difficult is it usually for a kid to switch from guard to center? What's involved in that? I'm assuming that it's a big advantage for a kid to come in as a center.

I don't want to say "most" but I will say "many" college centers don't play center in high school. Athletes who are good enough for college football often don't play center in high school because they would be somewhat wasted at that position. Many high school coaches will play their most talented kids at tackle, which is why so many kids are ranked on recruiting sites as "tackles" despite the fact that lots of them end up playing guard.

The most difficult change from guard to center, in my opinion, is the mental aspect. Calling out protections, picking up blitzers, etc. The center position is pretty easy to play from a physical standpoint, as long as you can snap the ball quickly/consistently. Centers rarely have to pull or trap, and they're not dealing with super-athletic defensive ends/outside linebackers regularly. They're typically dealing with fat, relatively slow defensive tackles.

Kids have to have the mental aptitude to play center. Unfortunately, that's not an easy trait to pick out on highlight tapes.

Let's say just for fun Hoke et al are in agreement with Thunder on this one and see a kid that isn't everything you'd maybe want in a Feb commit, I'm wondering if on top of a lot of size and some mobility, those guys saw some value in continuing the theme of kicking Sparty tail at instate recruiting?

Whoa.... Dave was selected all army camp offensive team. what happens there? PASS BLOCKING. What did he do whilst pass blocking? RAPE PEOPLE. so you have a 6'4" 300 lb. kid that obviously moves well enough to RAPE in Pass protection at one of the most talent laden camps in the country. what is the fuss about? He obviously has a nasty streak in his tape, was a sophmore starter on of the most division 1 prospect producing prep schools in the Midwest if not the NATION, and rapes with pass blocking.

okay, hes not athletic/quick as his own O-tackle teammate, 6'8" Dennis Finley, he does have a few mechanic/fundamental issues, but other than that i dont see anything else that is a problem.

Personally, I feel high school o-lineman are the easiest to scout. do they pancake, stay low, and have decent feet. If there are a lot of candidates that fit that mold, the next thing a college coach has to ask is do they fit their scheme which will narrow the candidates down significantly. Dave fits one if not both of those questions and hes the top3 lineman in his own state. one is going to notre dame, why not offer the next best?

This Dawson kid can play! Don't really care for this blog because it seems like your trying to say he's not good enough to play with the Chris fox kid or Pocic. He's one he'll of a player and his offer list speaks volumes! The Michigan staff knows what they want and since your on a computer and not the office I don't think you should be making comments like this against that young man.